Elastic fabric for a stocking top



8 Sheets-Sheet 2 Dec- 19, 1961 A. o. CORMIER ELASTICI FABRIC FOR IIsTocKING TOP Filed Deo. s, 1957 FIG. 2

INVENTOR. Alcide 0. Cormier ATTORNEY I /WNEv/.

FIG 3 I9 II II DIRECTION oF KNITTING Dec. 19, 1961 A. o. CORMIER3,013,420

ELASTIC FABRIC FOR A STOCKING TOP Filed Dec. 3, 1957 8 Sheets-Sheet 5FIG. 4

DIRECTION 30 15 40 30 oF KNITTING Alcide O. Cormier BY ATTO RNEY A. o.CORMIER 3,013,420 ELASTIC FABRIC FOR A STOCKING rOP Y 8 Sheets-Sheet 5INVENTOR.

Alcide O. Cormier Dec. 19, 1961 Filed Dec. 5, 1957 ATTORNEY Dec. 19,1961 FIG.9

1 l W/k u u//u ll O 121/567811 wccmcccc/c Alcide O. Cormier Dec. 19,1961 A. o. CORMIER 3,013,420

ELASTIC FABRIC FOR A sTocKING TOP ATTORNEY Dec. 19, 1961 A. o. CORMIERELASTIC FABRIC FOR A sTocxING TOP 8 Sheets-Sheet 8 Filed Dec. 3, 1957INVENTOR. Alclde O. Cormier ATTORNEY nited States Patent Cfice 3,013,420ELASTIC FABRIC vFOR A STOCKING TGP Alcide O. Cormier, Laconia, N.H.,assignor to Cormier Hosiery Mills, Inc., Laconia, N.H., a corporationFiled Dec. 3, 1,957, Ser. No. 700,355 6 Claims. (CJ- S6-1970 Thisinvention relates to elastic knit fabrics, such as used in the tops ofhosiery, and, more particularly, to a novel knit fabric characterized bylongitudinally alternating short and long raised effects orprotuberances providing effects or protuberances of substantiallydiffering shapes or forms, with laterally adjacent series of thealternating short and long protuberances being staggered relative toeach other, and to la method of making such fabric.

In accordance with the invention, a novel fabric of this type is knit byforming equal number groups of tuck stitches at longitudinally alignedlocations in each of two or more successive courses, the tuck stitcheswithin each group being separated by at least one non-tucked wale andthe groups of tuck stitches being separated along the courses by anumber of wales greater than the number of tuck stitch separating waleswithin each group. This sequence is repeated in the same locationsaround further courses after a pre-set number of immediately succeedingcourses are knit with tuck stitches formed at locations corresponding tothe group-separating wales of the initial sequence. This provides analternating tuck stitch effect.

An elastic thread is interlaced into either plain courses separating andbounding the groups of courses containing alternating groups of tuckstitches or into the beginning or ending courses in which thealternating groups of tuck stitches -are formed. Clearing courses may beused or not, as desired.

4For an understanding of the invention principles, reference is made tothe following descriptions of typical embodiments thereof as illustratedin the accompanying drawings. In the drawings:

PIG. l is a diagram illustrating the stitch formation looking at theface of a first fabric embodying the invention;

FIG, 2 is a reproduction of an enlarged photograph of the unstretchedface of such first fabric;

FIGS. 3 and 4 are similar reproductions illustrating, respectively, thestretched front and back faces of such first fabric;

FIG. 5 is a diagram, similar to FIG. 1, of a second fabric embodying theinvention;

FIGS. 6, 7 and 8 are views, corresponding, respectively, to FIGS. 2, 3and 4, of such second fabric;

FIG. 9 is a diagram, similar to FIG. l, of a third fabric embodying theinvention; and

IFIGS. 10, 11 and 12 are views, corresponding, tively, to FIGS. 2, 3 and4, of such third fabric.

In U. S. Patent No. 2,765,643 issued Oct. 9, 1956 to R. G. Marquis,there is described a fabric having staggered raised effects provided bytucking at alternate needles for a pre-set number of course, clearing ata boundary course, tucking at intermediate needles for a pre-set numberof courses, and again clearing at a boundary course,

respecwith an elastic yarn being interlaced into the boundary coursesbetween groups of tuck stitches.

ln making the fabric of the present invention, a Somewhat relatedtechnique is used, but the elastic yarn or thread either is interlacedinto plain knit courses separating and 4bounding the courses containingtuck stitches, or

it is interlaced into one of the beginning or ending courses includingthose in which tuck stitches are formed. The clearing courses may beretained or not, as desired. The result is a fabric having novel raisedeffects of quite different shapes or forms due to the knitting sequenceand through C12. lIn course C13, the held loops of all the previouscourses are cleared, or cast off.

Next, starting in course C14, the stitches in wales-W1 andk W3 aretucked through and including course C24, while complete stitches areformed in wales W2 and W4 through W8. In course C1, following courseC24, the held loops of the previous courses are cast off, or cleared.

An elastic yarn or thread 15 is illustrated as interlaced between thestitches forming courses C23 and C24 and between those forming coursesC11 and C12. This interlacing may be effected by the known technique offeeding elastic yarn to the hooks of alternate uncleared needles (suchas to the needles forming wales W2, W4, W6 and WS), lowering these tobring elastic yarn 15 into the sinker throats with the sinkers withdrawnfor this purpose, projecting the sinkers inwardly while the heads of theneedles are below the sinker ledges to assure the elastic yarn gettingto Ithe back of the intermediate needles, raising all needles to theclear level, and knitting.

Iwf'elastic yarn 15 is thus fed to alternate needles while the loops of`course C24 or C12 are around the Shanks of the needles, the yarn 15will join the inelastic or regular yarn of course C24 or C12 below thelatches of such alternate needles as the regular yarn forming course C1or C13 is drawn through the loops of course 24 or coursel Elastic yarn15 inwback of the intermediateneedles (suchasthose forming wales W1, W3,W5, W7) will be associated with the stitchesV of course C23 ror courseC11. This technique is described inPage Patent No. 2,117,208.

The clearing courses may be omitted since the tucked stitches arestaggered. Tests show that, if elastic yarn 15 is interlaced into thefirst or last tuck stitch containing courses, a fabric havingprotuberances will be formed. It is only when elastic yarn is interlacedinto the intermediate tuck stitch containing courses that the fabricbecomes substantially flat and loses its protuberances.

Referring to FIGS.' 3 and 4, it will be noted that the held loops 30 arerelatively short, causing the courses to curve instead of lying in astraight line as diagrammatically shown in FIG. l. The resulting strainon elastic yarn 15 not only causes the fabric to narrow but also toshorten to make the relatively long protuberances 35 of FIG. 2. Theexcess of stitches in wales W2 and W6 between the held stitches bulgeoutwardly to form the Short and differently `formed protuberances shownat 40 in FIG. 2.

From the foregoing, it will be clear that a relatively complicated novelpattern is obtained by rearranging the tucking needles so that, insteadof being staggered after a pre-set number of tucks, they are arranged inpairs or groups around the stocking top. The number of courses overwhich the tuck stitches are held determines the height as well as thelength of the raised protuberances.

The tucking needles may be grouped in various ways to produce differenteffects. Thus, in the fabric 10' of FIGS. 5 to 8, tuck stitches areformed at wales W1', W3 and W5. The tuck loops of wales W1 and W3 extendover courses C1 through C8', and the tuck loops of wale W5 extend overcourses C9 through C16. The alternating long and short protuberances 35and 40 will occur in wales W1', W2', W3', while in wales W4', W5' and W6-there will be only substantially uniform length Patented Dec. 19, 1961l protuberances 45. The appearance of the unstretched fabric is shown inFIG. 6, while FIGS. 7 and 8 show the stretched fabric.

Another variation of the fabric is shown in FIGS. 9-12. In thesefigures, fabric 10 comprises tuck stitches in wales W1, W3, W5 extendingover courses C1" through C8". The tuck stitch wales are separated,within each group, by plain stitches in wales W2" and W4", and thegroups are separated by wales W6" through W10". In the next sequence,tuck stitches are formed in wales W7 and W9" and extended over coursesC9" through C16. These tuck stitches are separated, within each group,by plain stitches in wale W8, and between groups by plain stitches inwales W10" and Wl" through W6".

As shown in FIG. 10, this produces a fabric 10 in which, in one group ofwales, long prtuberances 35" alternate with laterally adjacent pairs ofshort protuberances 40". In the intervening groups of wales, longprotuberances 35 alternate with single short protuberances 40, theseprotuberances being staggered relative to those in the first group ofwales.

While specific embodiments of the invention have been shown anddescribed in detail to illustrate the application of the inventionprinciples, it will be understood that the invention may be embodiedotherwise without departing from such principles.

What is claimed is:

1. An elastic knit fabric for use in hosiery comprising laterally spacedgroups of at least two multi-course neighboring tuck stitches, the tuckstitches within each group being separated laterally by at least onewale of plain stitches, and the groups being Separated laterally by anumber of plain stitch wales greater than the number of plain stitchwales within each group; followed, in staggered relation, bymulti-course tuck stitches in the Wales formed of plain stitchesseparating such groups; and an elastic yarn interlaced in the borderingcourses between the staggered multi-course groups of tuck stitches; thefabric being characterized by raised protuberances of differing lengthsin staggered relation.

2. An elastic knit fabric, for use in hosiery, comprising bands ofseveral contiguous inelastic courses separated by at least oneinterlaced elastic course, alternate of said bands of inelastic coursescontaining groups of single Wale tucks involving sequentially thecourses between the interlaced elastic courses, the tuck wales havingplain wales therebetween; and intervening bands of inelastic coursescontaining groups of single Wale tucks involving sequentially thecourses between the interlaced elastic courses, the tuck wales in theintervening bands being in substantial staggered relationship to thetuck wales in the alternate bands of courses; whereby staggeredprotuberances of different forms are made.

3. An inelastic knit fabric as claimed in claim 2, wherein the elasticis interlaced into the last of the contiguous courses containing thetucks.

4. An elastic knit fabric as claimed in claim 2, wherein certain of thesingle Wale tucks are separated by a single plain wale, thus to form agroup of tucks; there being plural plain wales between the groups oftucks.

5. An elastic knit fabric as claimed in claim 2, having groups of tucksin alternate bands of contiguous inelastic courses in staggered relationto group of tucks in intervening bands of contiguous inelastic courses.

6. An elastic knit fabric as claimed in claim 2, wherein the groups oftucks in alternate bands of the contiguous inelastic courses contain anumber of single wale tucks differing from the number thereof in thestaggered groups in the intervening bands of contiguous elastic courses.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,002,271 Lombardi May 21, 1935 2,266,678 Krasnov et al Dec. 16, 19412,286,171 Krasnov et al. June 9, 1942 2,324,036 Smith July 13, 1943FOREIGN PATENTS 533,105 Great Britain Feb. 6, 1941

